


Danganronpa: XXV

by JustBeleth



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, Fluff and Angst, Heavy Angst, M/M, Monokuma is a bitch, Original Character(s), Pre-New Dangan Ronpa V3, Slow Burn, do not repost to another site
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:28:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28046202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustBeleth/pseuds/JustBeleth
Summary: [Danganronpa V3 spoilers]We are told Danganronpa v3 is the 53rd killing game ever orchestrated. So what were the games before it like?This story follows the 25th killing game.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 6





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> So, there are 50 danganronpa games we know nothing about. Therefore, me and a group of my friends have taken creative liberty to write our story of one of these games. Massive thanks to Megan & Milly for helping me come up with the characters and plot points and Ella for co-writing and editing!

I woke up. I’m in an enclosed area. It’s cold. I don’t know where I am. I don’t know what is happening. I don’t remember anything. Stop. What do I know first? My name is Bura Fuyu, I am the Ultimate Lucky Student, and I’m in a locker. Instead of staying in here and having a panic attack, I suppose I should try to push my way out. Thankfully, the door opened up with a small push, requiring very little effort on my behalf.  
I’m now standing in a corridor. There are a few windows around the room, revealing snow-covered mountains scattering the land. The corridor itself has a multitude of other lockers around, the majority of them being covered in moss and fungi. The locker I forced my way out of seems to be the only one exempt from the overgrowth of the others. I have nothing better to do, so I may as well just walk down the hall, maybe I’ll see if there are any more people stuck in rusty lockers.

As if in a random stroke of luck, I saw another locker that seemed to be free of vegetation. The door rapidly swung open, causing another girl to fall out and faceplant the floor. Her clothes were… loud, to put it bluntly. She had adorned her hair with a multitude of different coloured hair-clips, her shirt & skirt were both a light shade of pink, and she wore these endearing heart-shaped shades.  
I could only assume I spaced out, as a few seconds later I heard a loud groan followed by-  
“Are you gonna fucking help me out or not?!”  
After profusely apologising to her, I held out my hand as a signal for her to take it, she grasped my wrist and hoisted herself up to her feet.  
“It’s about fucking time! Thanks for the help, uhh..?”  
“Bura, Bura Fuyu.”  
I honestly tried to sound confident as I spoke, but the laugh returned destroyed any form of comfort I had.  
“Anyway, what about you?” She stuck her hand out, this time for me to take.  
“My name is Ichiha Wakaba, I’m the Ultimate Romantic, gorgeous! Take care not to forget it, or I’ll have you screaming it later.” ...that sounds rehearsed.  
Why am I blushing at that? This girl is the Ultimate Romantic, not a siren!  
“Alright then Ichiha, I suggest we go and see if anyone else is in a similar predicament before you start making comments like that.”  
Greeted with another laugh, the two of us continued down the corridor.

As we walked side by side, I found my eyes constantly drifting to her with a question on my mind - how is this girl not cold? We are walking down a long hallway that is constantly plagued with a cold chill from the cracks in the walls; I’m wearing a hoodie and pants and I’m shivering meanwhile Ichiha is in a short skirt and T-shirt, and I can’t even see goosebumps!  
I was distracted from my thoughts once again as Ichiha placed her arm in front of me, signalling for me to stop. There was some kind of robot stationed before us. It looked to have a gun instead of an arm, and neither me or Ichiha wanted to find out if it worked. We slowly began to back away, heading back in the direction we came from but the robot saw us, damn my luck.  
The machine gave chase, causing the two of us to sprint away as fast as we could.  
As we fled, the air got colder and colder. We ran past the original lockers, past the windows, past the moss, until the cold air made it borderline impossible to breathe.  
Then…  
I saw a small door to our right.  
I grabbed Ichiha’s wrist and pulled her into the room, quickly shutting the door behind us; giving us a moment of respite to close our eyes and catch our breaths.  
Opening my eyes, I saw a room of 14 other people, each looking as tired and as cold as the rest of us.  
There was one girl at the front, standing up and trying to calm everyone down. Once she saw us, she turned to us with a worried smile on her face.  
Another girl spoke up before they could even muster a word; her voice was comfortably condescending, as she began to scold us for “being late” and having “no concept of formality”.  
It took 3 other people to calm her down and shut her up. The first girl began to talk to us, introducing herself as Giichi Akira, the Ultimate Leader, and asking if we were ‘okay’, if we had been ‘chased by a robot as well’ and if we ‘also had amnesia’, along with a plethora of other questions which I couldn’t really comprehend in that moment.

Ichiha took the reins of the conversation, filling Giichi in on what had happened since we stepped out the lockers. She didn’t fail to mention that I had been “staring at her longingly” the entire time.  
I took the time to stare around the room and see who else was trapped in here - from only a brief glance, apparently there were 6 boys, 8 girls and 2 non-binary people. Everyone was talking at once.  
I began to zone out as the fresh dialogue turned white noise filled the room.

A loud whirring noise was heard outside as the robot burst into the room. 4 other robots burst in from different doors, trapping all of us in a circle in the middle. The robots whirred again and they opened to reveal 5… bears operating them? Bears?!  
They each jumped out with a joyful “Rise and shine, ursine!”, before introducing themselves as the Monokubs: Monokid, Monosuke, Monodam, Monophanie and Monotaro. Their voices were grating, and if I wasn’t scared of those robots I probably would have ripped them in 2 by now. They each looked odd, is all I can say, really. They had two-tone bodies in red, pink, green, yellow and blue. How do you even breed multi-coloured bears, I thought to myself. Jesus, the production on this must have been insane.

The bears began to speak of something unintelligible to my ears in their current state, and I didn’t really understand any of it. Before we could even collect our thoughts, the bears suddenly started fighting among each other.  
Fucking hell, I wish I’d been listening to what was going on.  
Thankfully, Ichiha seemed just as perplexed as me, as she latched onto my arm.

The lights flickered off, and a static voice came through the speakers “Mic check! Can you kids hear me?”  
I didn’t recognise the voice, but it certainly shut up those mewling miniscule mongooses.  
The voice continued. “Puhuhu! Sorry to keep you all waiting!” That sounds like another damn bear.

“Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls, welcome! The newest killing game commences as of now!”  
Okay, that was concerning to say the least. Something is telling me this “killing game” isn’t going to be as fun as its name suggests. The mere mention of something so brutal caused a murmur to spread along the students. The voice became annoyed at all the new noise that arose, and began to scream for silence.  
“Jeez, you stupid children have no respect for your superiors! I suppose introductions are necessary for brain dead buffoons such as yourselves. I am Monokuma! The headmaster of this fine winter school!”

As if things couldn’t get any worse, we are in a fucking school. Wonderful. Because I wanted to spend my time doing maths while fighting for my life. 

The screen above my head flickers on, as though it’s being interrupted by a third party signal. Through the crunchy-looking visual, I can just about make out a bear shape. Fuck. Monokuma is of a clearer quality now, and he’s quite a scary sight. He looks fairly similar to the Monokubs - that must be where they get their name - with a half white and half black body. His right eye is red and pointed, and his smile is menacing… yet he’s still incredibly squishable.

Monokuma continues his speech to us. He tells us the robots are called ‘Exisals’ and are simply there to ensure the safety of the school, and to observe if the students drastically damage anything. It’s obviously very comforting to know that they aren’t here to protect us... but instead the school’s property.  
The bear also tells us in our pockets we have “Monopads”, something that includes all our information and the basic information of any other students we talk to.  
I only have Ichiha’s and my information so far, but from the faces of the other students they only had their own.  
The bear speaks up again.  
“Now then, you lucky things have been specially selected to partake in my latest killing game! Murder! Carnage! Anarchy! How beautiful it is, huh? I’ve waited for this for so long…

“You guys need to get to know each other better, and fill out your Monopads! Oh yeah! Monopads are also the key to your cabins and the other areas around the school! So don’t lose them! As your headmaster, I will be making announcements every morning! So don’t be late for them, got it?! Spend the rest of today interacting with each other and settling into your new life. You won’t be leaving here for a good while.”

“Unfortunately, you’ll each be sharing a cabin with one other student. Budget cuts, y’know? Cut me some slack, we aren’t as funded as we used to be, damnit!”  
The screen then powered off with the same interrupted-broadcast style as before, and the Monokubs had disappeared. The rest of us were left standing in a circle of confusion.

Giichi stepped up to the front, and suggested that as the Ultimate Leader, she would be most suited to take charge. Of bloody course, she went and set up a group introduction - y’know, one of those introvert-phobic situations where we were all meant to go around in a circle and give our names & talents. I ended up kind of ignoring that and walked out of the hellscape. It was only after I started to walk away that I realised Ichiha was still connected to my arm. 

After a minute or two of silence, Ichi - curse my brain for giving her a nickname! - spoke up.  
“So, where are we going?”  
Her voice had lost that spark it had earlier. I can’t exactly blame her after that debacle.  
“I want to find those cabins the bear talked about. Even a bit of rest will be good enough after all of this.” I didn’t meet her gaze as I said this, my head was still reeling from what we had just been told, so I just kept walking.  
Luckily I had walked into the direction of the cabins, as 8 log cabins were dotted along a short street. 2 names were written on the front of each one. So. I really am going to have to room with someone. Fucking perfect.  
The first door read “Yasuo Banna & Taka Masumi”, the second “Pia Kaiya & Hama Osei”. I gave up and just began to scan the doors, hoping that me and Ichi would be in the same cabin to make all of this a little more bearable. My luck is definitely going to run out one day, as sure enough “Bura Fuyu & Ichiha Wakaba” was written on the door of the 5th cabin. I couldn’t tell whether I was elated or full of discontentment.

We pushed open the door to reveal the interior of the cabin - it had a quaint and homely feel, despite all that was happening around us. The furniture looked too cute for something in a killing game and a fire was roaring in the back. Thankfully there were two separate rooms, so I let Ichiha choose first. She gave me a sly wink and a snarky comment of “Awh, you do love me after all!”, before heading into her new room. This is gonna be a loooong killing game.

Staring out of the window, it appeared everyone was returning to the cabins; some people were smiling at the prospect of roommates while others were grimacing either to themselves or each other. Ichi and I decided to walk outside to see if we could talk to anyone else by the end of the day. We managed to catch Giichi who was talking with someone else, and I managed to quickly apologise for leaving so suddenly earlier. Fortunately for everybody involved, she was incredibly understanding and mentioned that nobody really listened to her anyways. She began to introduce Furi Kofuku to me, explaining that they were the Ultimate Actor.  
Furi and Ichi began to talk to each other, both of them bringing out the bubbly attitude of the other. Looking at the Monopad, I saw it had been updated with Giichi and Furi’s information. Giichi quickly confirmed to me that her Monopad now had Ichi’s & my data.

Suddenly, another girl waltzed up to us and prodded me in the chest. She was a lot shorter than me which was certainly a hard feat, as I’m only 5’3.  
“I have no idea why,” the short girl began, poking me in the chest again, “but I feel like I should really hate you for that shirt!”  
As stupid of a reason that was to hate someone, she may have a point. My shirt had an image of a man with white hair who I don’t ever remember seeing, impaled by a spear and tied up at his hands and feet, and the short girl was wearing the same jacket as the man in the image. I didn’t know how to respond to her, so I merely stayed quiet. Ichi gave her an intimidating look and the girl backed off with a huff.  
My Monopad beeped, and I pulled it out of my pocket to see that the information had been updated. Good to know I don’t need to have a positive interaction with someone to get their info. The girl’s name was Aiki Kureiji, the Ultimate Fangirl of ???.  
“Hey, is your Monopad glitched too? Just there, see?” I pointed to the question marks.  
Giichi’s comment let me know I wasn’t going insane, and there was just something wrong with the Monopad.  
“Maybe it’s just the amnesia talking, but she may not remember the entirety of her talent. I may need to change this shirt though, if it’s gonna get that harsh of a reaction.” Giichi giggled, slapped me on the back and responded with a smile.  
“Fair enough. Did you know that the Ultimate Baker doesn’t even remember their name? Heaven knows what unknown thing will set them off! We’ll definitely be there for them, right, pal?”  
The two of us began to laugh as Ichi and Furi returned, we said goodbye to the other pair as they split off to their cabin.

As they left, 4 other people approached us, introducing themselves as Yasuo Banna & Kosuchuma Bahira, the Ultimate Builder and Cosplayer respectively; along with Taka Masumi and Chomei Gunshiro, the Ultimate Climber and Student. They all seemed really wonderful people. Kosuchuma began to talk with Ichi about costumes, and the way both of their eyes lit up was dazzling. It seemed, wonderfully, that Ichiha could make friends with almost anybody.

I didn’t have a lot to talk with Yasuo and Taka about, so we ended up talking about the current situation with each other. While it was a mellow conversation, it allowed me to see that Yasuo was a sweet boy, as he spoke of plans to try to escape this place with everyone alive. Taka, while holding the same sentiment, had a more… punchy approach. Chomei didn’t speak - I think he may be mute - but he stood beside us and nodded along to our conversation. After a while of talking, we agreed to meet up again tomorrow and waved goodbye, all retreating back to our cabins.

Flopping onto my bed, I check the Monopad one last time. Including my data, I now have 9/16 slots full. I’ll need to introduce myself to everyone else tomorrow, but for now sleep is more important.  
A spare change of clothes and some pyjamas are in the wardrobe. At least Monokuma isn’t completely heartless, I sigh to myself. I quickly slip into the pyjamas, yell goodnight to Ichi and go to sleep.

At least… I try to sleep. 

I stare at the pitch black ceiling, and my brain repeats one question: what the hell were we supposed to do from here? Eventually, I close my eyes with the worst headache I’ve had in years. I just pray to whatever power exists that it’s not a bad omen.


	2. The Killing Game Continues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHH WE FINALLY FINISHED CHAPTER TWOOOO  
> AS FOR A SCHEDULE:  
> I’m just going to update this when I feel like it, but I’m going to try to stick to once every two weeks.  
> MASSIVE THANKS TO CHERRYKOMAEDA AGAIN FOR BEING SUCH A GREAT HELP WITH EDITING AND WRITING. HALF OF THESE SCENES WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE IF NOT FOR HER!

The headache isn’t gone when I wake up. Just my luck. It feels like everything that happened the previous day was nothing more than a bad dream, but turning over in my bed and staring out of the weirdly clean window reveals the snowy exterior of my new home. Does time even work the same way here as it used to? I feel like I’ve literally been sleeping for hours, yet it is still dark outside… please tell me I haven’t slept a whole day. The sky was a dark shade of orange and pink, so it could just be sunrise?

I groggily pull myself from the bed. Noticing how hard this mattress truly is, I stumble over to where I had thrown my clothes the previous day and quickly throw them back onto my body. I opt to wear a different T-shirt, however, as my previous interaction with Aiki has left a sour taste in my mouth.

The scene outside is actually rather pretty despite the circumstances. Snow is falling slowly towards the ground and small pastel tinged fairy lights are dancing around the rooms on a chase setting, illuminating the darkened walkway outside my own window. Condensation is forming on the base of the windows, making me think that warmer clothes may be a necessity. Grabbing the pink gloves and large purple scarf from the counter and throwing them under my arm, I stagger to the bathroom to wash myself up before heading out.  
I turn on the hot tap and run my hands underneath, before just as quickly pulling them away. Apparently, hot water is non-existent in this hellscape.  
Current events begin to remind me of that old saying, it’s like “when hell freezes over''. Well, I’m pretty sure I’m in hell, and it’s cold as fuck.

Sighing at the blatant deprivation of a decent morning, I walk into the living room to see Ichiha’s door is still closed. Out of boredom and curiosity, I knock on her door.  
No response. I knock again.  
Still nothing.  
I push her door slightly open in order to stick my head around. Ichi is laying in a position that does her no favours, with her pink quilt draped randomly on the floor. If the drool coming out of her mouth is any sign, she’s still sleeping heavily. It’s endearing to know I’m not the worst at waking up around here. 

As harsh as that fucking bear is, I’m almost positive he wouldn’t expropriate us of food if he wanted to play this sick killing game with us, so I decide to leave Ichi to get a few more minutes of well-earned beauty sleep as I make us both some breakfast. She was there for me yesterday... and it’s the least I can do for her. I regretfully let a small smile creep its way onto my face. Shut up. It means nothing.  
Luckily enough, there’s some bread and jam in the cupboard. It won’t be much, but it’s edible, at least. The toaster looks a little old, but it should still work with minimal noise.  
I put the toast into the rickety machine and turn it on, then suddenly…  
BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR  
Fuck.  
A loud groan emanates from Ichi’s room.  
Fuuuuuck.  
A loud thud is audible from Ichi’s room… Jesus Christ.  
“Fuck!”  
Trying my best to bite back a giggle, I turn my head in the direction of the noise. I shouldn’t laugh at that. I really shouldn’t laugh at that. I should… probably go check on her. Just to see if she’s okay. Don’t get any ideas.  
“Fucking hell! Why... why is the floor...”  
That comment does it. I unravel into a fit of laughter as another groan can be heard from Ichiha. The toaster makes a satisfying DING! noise, and I do my best to calmly spread jam as my body shakes from laughter. I put the toast gently onto a plate and walked over to Wakaba’s room once again. 

Knocking on the door, I slowly push it open to reveal Ichiha faced flat on the floor in pink pyjamas, not making any effort to remove herself from the floor she’s damned the existence of.  
Attempting to push words out through giggles, I manage to blurt, “Morning sleepyhead! I made you some breakfast.” I chuckle a little at the sight of a discontented Ultimate Romantic. “You, uh, look like you might need it after that.”  
All that’s returned to me was a groan and a “Fuck off, Fuyu!”, before she sits herself up and eagerly pulls the plate of toast from me. 

Giggling a little, I leave the girl alone to get ready. I pull my mask over my mouth and walk outside onto the porch, hoping to catch those I didn’t meet yesterday.  
Stepping outside I instantly see Giichi, who’s talking to 2 other people. The three of them look an awful lot like they’ve been awake for hours.  
Fucking early birds.  
Even now, standing outside, I cannot tell whether it is sunrise or sunset.  
Giichi spots me and beckons me over. Having nothing better to do, I stagger over to them, a yawn escaping from my lips.

Giichi begins to introduce me to the two. I hear my name once or twice before my brain finally tunes into the conversation. The two people standing before me have appearances that… completely contradict each other, to say the least. One has pink hair neatly tied up into 2 buns with absolutely nothing else atop their head, whereas the other has bright blue hair adorned with a multitude of different clips in a chaotically organised way.

The man with blue hair turns to me and holds out his hand. He has a big grin on his face and it certainly makes the situation feel less awkward.  
“Nice to meetcha! Name’s Eka, the Ultimate Hair Stylist! Giichi said your name was Bura Fuyu?”  
I grasp Eka’s hand and firmly shake it, as thanks for putting me at ease.  
“Yeah, that’s me! I’m the Ultimate Lucky Student, it’s nice to meet you too!”  
The other girl scoffs as I mention my Ultimate. She tilts her face up and stares down her nose at me. Bitch.  
“So you get lucky once or twice, big deal. My name is Leilo Lekki. I’m the Ultimate Influencer, but you probably already knew that.”  
I see why this girl went for what she has, but I just don’t understand how she’s made it big with a personality like that. She actually feels almost familiar; I just can’t place where I remember her from.

I’m not allowed to speculate on this matter too much, as more doors open and other people begin to exit their houses. Lekki groans and walks over to Aiki. As soon as she leaves, luckily, the three people I haven’t been introduced to yet walk over to me, Giichi and Eka. Well, I suppose saying ‘walk over’ is a gross understatement to describe what’s really happening. The small kid with shaggy brown hair, glasses and a scarf is dragging the other two by their collars. Calm down kid, it’s a Tuesday.

As they’re being dragged over, Giichi speaks up.  
“Oh! That’s the Ultimate Baker kid I mentioned yesterday, I don’t know who the other two are, however. I’ve not been subject to the pleasures of meeting them!” She flashes a smile, and it’s truly befitting of the Ultimate Leader.  
“Giichi-chan!” The Baker’s voice is annoying. It’s one of those voices that goes right through you and whenever you hear the person speak, you want to stuff a sock into their mouth.  
I feel sorry for the two students he’s pulling along. 

The kid doesn’t acknowledge me, and simply begins to talk to Giichi. The two people he was dragging are dropped to the ground and face-planted into the snow. Doing my best to ignore the bread child, I walk over to the two and help them to their feet.  
The first one speaks rather theatrically.  
“Ahh! Merci, mon ami, your kindness is most appreciated, Madame.”  
It... feels like they’re trying too hard to put a French accent on. I don’t want to say they aren’t French, just that their accent’s forced. Not even sorry. Anyway... they have short, ginger hair which contrasts their green eyes and they’re wearing a black and red striped outfit, seperated into a crop top and pants. They introduce themselves as Akari Parani, the Ultimate Dancer, before turning to their friend and introducing them as Kaliya Suru, the Ultimate Collector. Kaliya’s only slightly better dressed for the weather, as he’s wearing a T-shirt, gloves and full length pants. He also has an eyepatch covering one of his grey eyes, but I think it’s best not to pry.

I’m pretty much convinced that nobody around here has a normal body temperature, before I notice Kaliya shivering. Poor kid.  
By now, Ichi finally has their act together and is out of our shared cabin, sprinting to the three of us with Yasuo in tow. The Builder looks half-awake himself - his hair’s still ruffled and his mask isn’t fitted correctly. 

As they reach us, Ichi crashes into me and knocks me over, pinning me down completely to the freezing cold snow.  
Fuuuuck.  
When I look up after the impact, I feel a particularly foreign heat crawl up onto my face as she smirks softly above me.  
My brain regains some normalcy, and I eventually push her off of me feeling slightly flustered.  
I then sit up. Just my luck, my cheeks are bright red and my hair is now full of soft, crumbly snow as she giggles away to herself in her own little world. I catch myself thanking fucking God my mask covered my idiot cheeks, or else I would never hear the end of it.  
Stupid Wakaba.

Akari looks scandalised by this, as they quickly pull me to my feet and glare at Ichi. He looks almost shocked as I help Ichiha stand.  
Akari swerves to look at Ichi and begins to talk.  
“Bonjour, mon ami! I do not believe I have had the pleasure of being introduced to your… fine person.” Their voice is laced in a venom that wasn’t present earlier… what the fuck is happening?  
“My name is Ichiha Wakaba! I’m the Ultimate Romantic, darling! Take care not to forget it.”  
Oh, joy to the world. I’m dealing with not one, but two helpless flirts.  
At least we know now that her speech from yesterday is definitely rehearsed, but... why has she left part of it out? She probably just forgot. She did fall out of bed.  
Directing my attention away from the two before things get too heated, I turn to see what the others are doing.

Eka’s intruded Giichi and the bread child’s conversation, and Giichi doesn’t look overly enthused with their predicament - said predicament being that both of them have latched onto either one of her arms. I’m only just beginning to realise how tall she truly is.

Diverting my attention again to Yasuo and Kaliya, I notice that Yasuo has also seen how cold the smaller boy was, and instead of ignoring it like I did, he’s given Kaliya his jacket.  
Kaliya’s blushing - actually, that’s an understatement - his whole face had turned red. Yasuo’s jacket acts more like a blanket, and nearly drowns the recipient. A subtle smile is present on Yasuo’s face.  
That idiot tall man hasn’t even realised what he has just done, and is instead focused on fixing up his mask. Chuckling a little, I walk over to the two, leaving Ichi and Akira to their flirtatious argument. 

As I approach the two, Yasuo waves at me and Kaliya retreats into the jacket even further. It’s really funny to watch how oblivious they both are. Just as I reach the two however, a bell rings out across the area.  
“Mic check! Can you delinquents hear me?”  
Fucking brilliant.  
It’s the damn bear again.  
Merely hearing his voice instantly dulls the mood. It even manages to stop Ichi and Akira from bickering, and I can’t tell whether that’s a positive or not.  
“Good to see that you’re fiiiiiinally awake! Boy, oh boy, do you losers take your sweet time. I mean, I don’t blame you. Who knows how much you have left?”  
Everyone lets out an audible soft gasp… Jesus Christ, Monokuma doesn’t hold back.  
“We can finally get this show on the road now! I expect to see all of you in the Great Hall before the sun has fully set! Don’t be late, now! Puhuhu~”

The announcement answered one of my questions at least. Yes, we had slept through a whole day. Brilliant.

Giichi uses this opportunity to push away from Eka and Book Boy, and stands on a small box to start talking.  
“Everyone! I suggest we all group up and walk to the Great Hall together!”  
For the Ultimate Leader, she sounds more like she was suggesting over commanding. I’m beginning to realise why she was ignored yesterday. Therefore, even though it feels like undermining her talent, someone has to take initiative to get anything done. I move over to Giichi and yell to the group.  
“Giichi is right! We all need to stick together. We need to stay as a group and face whatever the bear has planned for us as a unit. Splitting up won’t do us any good. Stick to a buddy system with your roommate.”

After I finish my short speech, I turn to look at Giichi. Her face somehow juxtaposes itself, as her face is contorted with admiration and sorrow. I feel awful, but someone had to do something.  
Thankfully my words seem to work, and everyone quickly pairs up with their roommates. We all start walking in one direction, hoping we’re headed the right way, only to be yelled at by the blue bear and turned in a complete 180.

The school we’re trapped in is actually really beautiful if not looked at through a cynical lens. The snow has stopped falling now, making the land before us even more visible.  
The cracks of dusk illuminate the slowly approaching building with a pink light, which makes it a lot less menacing than it would be normally.  
I don’t think the rest of the group shares my sentiment, as a low murmur begins to erupt along the group. Ichi grabs a tight hold of my arm as well, turning her head to the rest of the group behind us. I turn myself around as well, just to see Akari shooting glares into Ichi. I don’t even want to imagine what Ichi did to piss them off so much. 

The sound of 16 pairs of feet squelching through the snow would normally be reassuring, as it gives the feel of solidarity and being part of a group, but today it’s dispiriting. 

We all knew we could be marching to our demise.

We reach the door to the Great Hall, and the door opens with no effort from us. It reveals a grand space that looks like it belongs in some fantasy book. It’s full of practically every winter wonderland cliche under the sun.  
The area inside has wooden walls lined with intricate patterns and carvings, and the stained glass windows let dimmed light illuminate the room. Small lanterns hanging from the ceiling also give off a little bit of light, however, it isn’t a lot as the flames were dwindling. Maybe it’s a marker of our spirit.

A familiar bear sits at the head of the hall, grinning down at all of us with that unchanging, unsettling expression.  
“Ahhhhh! It’s good to see all you wonderful kids again! Now then, how was your sleep? Actually, scrap that - I don’t care! Rest isn’t interesting, but murder sure is!”

Fucking brilliant. The bear is still trying to push the murder thing onto us, as if anyone would kill for his entertainment.

“I understand that some of you may have cold feet about murdering someone else, so I, the generous Monokuma, have brought it upon myself to gift you all this Christmas! Correct, I’ve decided to provide some motivation! Puhuhuhu!”

Fuck. This isn’t good.

“There are multiple labs around the school, specifically crafted to cater to the talent of everybody here! You want access to the area built entirely to your wants and needs? You gotta kill for it! The more people that die, the more labs I will open! A real score, huh? No? Tough crowd, tough crowd.”

Fuuuuuuck. This really isn’t good. I’d hope that the people here wouldn’t kill over something so... trivial, but I don’t know these people! One of them could be a scissor-stabbing-serial murderer for all I know!  
No. Cut that out, Bura. We need to try to trust these people or we will be playing right into the bear’s hands. Paws. Cold, soulless robot plushie limbs.

My heart starts to race at the sheer mention of anybody here dying. I can’t fathom it, it just won’t register in my head. I refuse to let anybody die.  
Ichiha seems to pick up on how panicked I am, as she rests a hand on my shoulder softly.  
“Breathe,” she whispers, “this is only temporary.”  
For some reason, I feel much calmer now.

“For the time being, I will open up four labs to show you juuuust what they’re like! Get the blood pumpin’, yknow?” Monokuma’s eyes widen menacingly. “Those four lucky schmucks are: Taka, The Ultimate Climber! The Ultimate Baker! Giichi, The Ultimate Leader, aaaand Bura, The Ultimate Lucky Student!”

That’s… my name. He says that my lab will be open. Is he trying to make me a target because he knows us four are the least likely to fall for this motive? To hell with that overthinking!  
For the time being, I need to see what this lab is about and stay alive.  
The four of us walk up to the Monokubs and took a keycard off of them.

“The rest of you can piss off! Your labs will open after people die! The Monokubs will show the four of you to your labs. See you later!”

The bear disappears, and then the pink one - Monophanie, was she called? - walks up to me and tugs on my wrist.  
“Miss Fuyu? Please may you follow me so that I can show you to your lab?”  
Compared to her bastard of a father, this little kub doesn’t seem so bad. I nod at her and grab her paw to let her lead me.

The group has all split off after Monokuma’s announcement. Chomei, Kosuchumu, Akari and Yasuo all follow Taka and the yellow bear to her lab, Furi and Eka follow Giichi and the red bear, while Kaliya follows the baker and the blue bear.

Ichi remains latched onto me.  
I’m beginning to think this is going to be a pattern.

She follows the two of us down the halls to the labs.  
The lab was back where Ichi and I had first woken up, right next to that room we’d darted in to escape the Exisal.  
“This is where I must leave you. I wish you both well in the killing game, Miss Fuyu and Miss Wakaba!”  
The pink bear leaves in a hurry, leaving me and Ichi standing at the door to my lab. 

Entering it seems like a bad idea. This place is supposed to be a motive for murder, for heaven’s sake, but my hands act before my thoughts do and I swipe the keycard and push open the door.

The lab isn’t what I expect of Monokuma. I expected to see a plethora of weapons that people could use to kill, but no. The walls are all green, and the ground is covered in grass. Real grass. No snow on top grass. Damn it, I’m just realising how much I’m missing basic human rights already.  
Inspecting the room further, I discover that the grass has sections of spots full of clovers - four leaf clovers to be exact. 

Ohhhhh. I’m beginning to realise what this lab is.  
What else is in here?  
There’s an open ladder over the door that Ichi and I just walked under. There are horseshoes on a broken pedestal in the centre of the lab. Walking up to it, I see my reflection in the pedestal - a broken mirror.  
Everything in this lab… it relates to either good or bad luck. Is this meant to be a way of weaponizing my talent against people?

Either way, it’s irrelevant. I’m getting tired, and if I’m honest I want to go back to the cabin to rest again.  
I voice these ideas to Ichi, who quickly agrees with me. We both leave the lab, locking it behind us. I don’t want to come back in here for quite some time. 

The walk back to the cabins isn’t long, and looking at other people’s cabins, most of them have the same idea as me and Ichi. The curtains are closed and all lights are off.  
A few curtains are still open, so I can only assume they’re still out investigating their labs.

I’m so tired. I can’t be bothered to haul myself into that hard, uncomfortable bed. You know what? This couch will fucking do. I lay down on it and fall asleep.

I’m positive it’s sunrise when I wake up as the sky’s a lot more blue, and the sunbeams in my eyes are plenty more obnoxious.  
I attempt sitting up, but there’s something heavy on my chest. Looking down through my hazy morning vision, I see Ichi curled up on top of me sleeping peacefully.

I reluctantly smile to myself. 

Maybe staying in bed for a few more minutes wasn’t the worst thing that could happen.

Unfortunately for me, a booming voice resonates outside.  
“Rise and shine, everyone! The day has just begun and so will we!”  
Giichi. Damn both you and my luck.  
Ichiha’s so startled by the sudden wakeup call, that she falls off the couch and onto the floor with a loud thump.

I can’t help but giggle softly at the parallel from yesterday before helping her up. Despite taking my hand, she still turns to me, and refutes my help with a quiet, flustered “Fuck off, Fuyu.”  
She, uh… she does realise she’s the one who accepted my help, right?

Anyway, we make ourselves a little bit of food before heading outside. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that toaster’s whirring and I’m not sure if I want to.

The two of us stroll outside together just to be swarmed by a worried Yasuo and Kaliya.  
They both begin screaming at us at the same time, and absolutely nothing that they say registers.  
Ichi shuts them both up - thank God - and asked them to calm down. She then turns to Yasuo and asks him to, and I quote this, “tell us what the fuck is going on in a way that doesn’t sound like Monokuma badly impersonating Akari!”

“Have you guys seen Taka anywhere? She never returned to our cabin last night and I can’t seem to find her anywhere.”  
Oh, fuck. No. Don’t even think about it. Taka probably just stayed the night in her lab.  
Kosuchumu and Chomei walk up to us.  
“Yasuo, Pia and Hami haven’t seen her either. I don’t think she left her lab last night.”  
Calm down. Breathe. Take initiative, and trust your luck.  
Ichiha’s hand is on my shoulder yet again, and I can’t tell whether my heart rate slows or quickens.  
I speak up.  
“Have you checked yet to see if she’s in her lab?”  
Chomei shakes his head. A glimmer of hope.  
“Then we should go over there and check. You guys are going to have to lead the way, because I have no idea where we’re going.”  
The four of them all nod in unison. 

Progress.

We’re finally getting somewhere.

We all begin to run in the direction of Taka’s lab, sprinting in fear down dark, winding corridors eerily similar to the ones leading to my lab. We all stop as we reach the door. It’s ever so slightly open. She’s probably just left it open by accident. Maybe she’s clumsy!

I push it open slowly and methodically. I don’t want to see what might lay on the other side of this door, but I know I have to. I know that, no matter what, I have to face the reality on the other side of this door, but…

I don’t want to.

With a deep breath I push it fully open.

The room is dim. Is there a light switch in here? 

I fumble across the wall before finding the switch and flicking it on. The room slowly illuminates itself, and I pray to any higher force that she’s asleep.

It was then that I learned the hard way that religion plays no part in a killing game. There’s no God, or Allah, or whatever the fuck you want to call him. He doesn’t exist at this school. There’s nothing but murder, and carnage, and utter, raw, unbridled despair.

Taka…

Taka is on the floor in front of the gargantuan climbing wall.  
Her blue eyes are wide from shock.  
Blood is oozing from her dark skin.  
Her black, curly hair and workout clothes are disheveled, and a tape measure is tied around her ankles.  
There is a fucking knife lodged in her neck. 

My breathing speeds up, and my hands shake.  
Taka Masumi, the Ultimate Climber, is dead.  
A born survivor, dead. Lifeless.  
Tears prickle at the corners of my eyes. This isn’t real. This can’t be real. Taka can’t be dead. This is just an elaborate prank from Monokuma. 

Yasuo screams. Kosuchumu runs over to her body. Chomei turns away, but it’s all happening in a blur. I can only stand there in shock as Ichi, bless her soul, does her best to calm everybody down and quieten them to an acceptable level.

It’s... despair.

Despair at its finest, and most miserable.

And we’re subject to it.

“A body has been discovered!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO! WE HAVE THE FIRST DEATH MWAHAHAHAHAHA. Yeah there are gonna be a lot of these so get used to it.  
> Sorry for not trying to flesh out Taka more before off-ing her, but there wasn’t really much that I wanted to do with her (which is why she has died first lmaoooo). I may end up writing oneshots and freetime events for this story after a while, so you may get to see more of her character then! (there may or may not be an ichifuyu christmas surprise coming - cherrykomaeda)  
> Fun fact! The name Taka Masumi actually has a meaning behind it (through little research on google) Taka is derived from “Takai”, which means “high”. The name “Taka” itself means “honourable” and “Masumi” means “innocence”, so their whole name is read as “the honourable innocence”. I may reveal the meanings behind everyone’s names as the characters die, who knows.


	3. Investigations

*Ding dong dong ding!*

She’s dead.

“A body has been discovered!”

She is really dead.

“Now then, after a certain amount of time has passed, a class trial will begin!”

Taka, our friend, is really dead in front of us.

“Everyone, please gather in the Ultimate Climber’s lab!”

And one of us killed her.

“More details on the killing game and the class trial will be given once everyone arrives!”

Time’s standing still. I can’t concentrate. Taka is on the floor. I’m still standing. Why her? Why now? There’s so, so much blood…

“Guys? What’s going on?”

Giichi is here. She’s probably seen the body already. Damn this. Damn all of this.

Kosuchumu is being pried off Taka’s body, and tears are still streaming down her face. I can’t blame her. Why am I not crying?  
Kaliya is holding Yasuo’s hand, desperately trying to calm the taller down while crying himself.

“Ha...”

I’m laughing. 

“Ahahahahahah...”

All of a sudden Ichi’s next to me, she has her hands on my shoulders and is trying to calm me down. What is she even saying? My head moves into her chest before I even realise, and I continue to laugh. 

“Ahahahahahahahaha!”

I don’t know how long I’ve been standing here for, but eventually I begin to calm down - even though my thoughts are still racing.  
Remember your laurels.  
5 things you can see: Ichiha, the floor, the climbing wall, everyone stood by the door, my hands.  
4 things you can touch: Ichiha, my hoodie, my hair, my mask.  
3 things you can hear: Ichiha, crying, my own breathing.  
2 things you can smell: Ichiha and fucking blood. Oh, fuck the blood.

I can stop. I’m now privy to what’s happening around me. Ichiha has her hands on my cheeks and she’s looking down at me with a frightened expression on her face. Looking up at her gentle features is calming me down quite a bit, and I’m able to flash her a small smile through a shaky breath before turning back to the rest of the group.

Everyone is in the same state of confusion. Some people are averting their gaze, others are standing there in shock; people are crying and screaming and it’s nigh on impossible to follow one train of thought. Giichi is standing in front of us all, doing her best. I can respect that.

The bell rings out again, quickly shutting everyone up. How the fuck does a bell have so many ominous connotations? I don’t even get the chance to think about that more, as the bear pops up again.

“Puhuhuhu…! Some of you were so confident a murder wouldn’t happen, but now look at where we are! One of you has murdered your classmate!”

The murmurs start up again. Fucking hell, this bear is somehow making this already horrible situation worse. 

“I, uh, I may have lied a little when telling you of the details of the labs.”

Of fucking course he did.

“After a murder happens, you will be given a set time to investigate. After that, a class trial will begin! During the trial, you will have to vote for, in your not-so-humble opinion, whodunnit!”

This is becoming even more sick and twisted as his words continue. We are just children, and now we need to figure out who killed our friend? This isn’t fair. This isn’t fair.

“If you vote for the blackened correctly, they will be sufficiently punished. If you vote incorrectly, I will punish everyone besides the blackened, and the murderer will be allowed to leave scott free!”

Fucking hell. Fuck all of this. Emotions mean fuck all to this bear.

“You have... until I get bored of the investigation, I don’t know. Tough times, eh? Then the class trial will begin! Information on the victim’s death will now be on your Monopads! Unless you didn’t bother to talk to her… bunch’o heartless kids. Anyway! G’bye, good luck! Puhuhuhuhu…!”

Then... he leaves. He leaves the remaining 15 students standing flabbergasted in the middle of their dead friend’s room. I really hate to even think this, but we have no time to waste. If my hunch is correct, this “punishment” the bear mentioned isn’t going to be as simple as “stand in a corner and think about what you’ve done”, it sounds more like it will be something akin to an execution. This bear probably has an eye-for-eye mentality in this game.

With a heavy sigh, I nudge towards Giichi and Ichi, motioning them to listen to me. I ask Giichi to calm everyone down and to help them with any worries, then to gather alibis after they’ve all calmed down, before turning to Ichi and asking her if she was up to investigate the crime scene with me. The two agree to my plan, and we all turn to complete our respective tasks.

Ichi and I don’t get too far towards the body before feeling a small tug on my wrist. Turning around, I lay eyes on Yasuo, his eyes locked to the floor. Poor kid, his voice is shaking as he speaks.  
“Please… let me investigate with you two. Someone killed my friend, and I want to find out who it was. Scratch that, I need to find out who it was..”  
Quickly turning to Ichi, the taller girl nods at me ever so slightly, letting me know she’s alright with the decision I was going to make anyway.  
I reach up and put my hand on the taller’s shoulder, doing my best to flash him a comforting grin before copying the Ultimate Romantic’s movements.  
“We need all the help we can get, Yasuo. I’d be more than happy to let you investigate with us.”

His face ever so slightly lights up at this response. It’s the most I can ask for in a situation like this.

First thing’s first, check the Monopad.  
Taka’s page has changed. It still notes her age, height, weight and talent, but the information on her personality has been replaced with a simplified autopsy report.  
Time of death, around 1am.  
Cause of death, blood loss or falling.  
Wait, blood loss or falling? Is the cause of death truly unknown, or is the bear just messing with us?  
Now isn’t the time to think about this before the body has been properly investigated. 

Giichi cleared everyone else out of the room, forcing them down the hall to a more communal area. I can only hope that enough people will be calmed down by the end of our investigation that we can build a half-solid case on who the blackened is.

Fuck! Concentrate! I need to figure out if there are any discrepancies or anomalies at the crime scene. Initially, I need to investigate the body.  
Just do it, Bura. Breathe. Remember what Ichi says, this is only temporary.  
Approaching Taka’s cold corpse feels like a fever dream. It… still doesn’t feel real.

There is a knife lodged into her neck. I can only suspect that it was the final cause of death. It’s a horrible way to go, really.

Looking at her body further, there are pencil markings on her wrists going up her arms? That… is odd. I do not remember her having those markings yesterday when we spoke.

“Are those… marks on her arms?”  
Ichi queries while approaching behind me, staring at the body with a look of shock engraved on her face.

“Pencil markings I believe, do you remember if she had these yesterday?” I turn over her wrist to see if the marks adorned the other side of her arm as I speak. “This may be serious evidence if she didn’t.”

Ichi stands still and thinks for a minute before shaking her head. “She definitely didn’t have those markings before. It’s strange. Do you think there may have been a struggle?”

A yell suddenly echoes through the lab from the top. Where’s Yasu... What is Yasuo doing?  
Why the fuck is he at the top of the climbing wall?!  
“Hey, guys! The wall up here’s chipped and damaged!”  
How did he even get up there?! Wait, what did he say?  
“It’s damaged?”  
“Yes! I… think Taka was probably caught by surprise up here and attacked. The damage is probably from when she tried to fight back!”

Good point. I made a mental note to remember this.

Everything in my lab is pristine - as in, it’s perfect - and if even a single clover was out of place, I doubt Monokuma would have let me inside. It’s pretty damning evidence if the top of the climbing wall is damaged.  
Aaaand Yasuo is still up there.  
“Thank you, Yasuo! Can you get down now though? You’re... making me a little worried.”  
With a strained laugh, Yasuo slowly makes his way down the wall.

Under any other circumstances, the three of us would just look like a group of friends dicking around and having fun, but the body laying on the floor brings us back to the harsh reality we’re trapped in. 

It fucking hurts to know that Taka and I could have been amazing friends. It really does. 

As Yasuo lands on the floor, Ichi calls the two of us over. She silently shows us something underneath Taka’s body.  
Taka’s ankles are marked red and there’s a small yellow thing underneath her leg, which means I’m going to have to pull it out. We need to see what it is.

Come on. Deep breath. 

I grab it and quickly pull, and it’s... a piece of tape measure? The measurements read 42cm across to 44cm. Damn, the killer used a lot of this shit.  
Combined with the red markings around her ankles and the broken climbing wall, it leads to one possible conclusion.

“...I think the knife’s a red-herring.”

I scramble to answer everybody’s protests.  
“It sort of makes sense, think about it. The killer wanted to cover the tracks of the true cause of death in order to confuse us all on what really happened.”  
As I ramble on, I realise that it also explains the inconsistency in the Monopad.

Following this train of thought, Giichi walks into the room with the Ultimate Baker close on her tail. She announces she has everyone’s alibis and begins to list them off to us.  
“Furi and Eka followed me to my lab, we stayed in there until nightfall when we all went in a group directly back to the cabins - safety in numbers, we decided. Kaliya and the baker did the same, but with the baker’s lab.” The Ultimate Baker nods beside her, confirming everything Giichi’s saying.

“Aiki, Leilo, Pia and Hama all went straight back to the cabins after the announcement, only Hama and Pia can confirm each other's alibis however, as they both stayed in Pia’s cabin together. Finally, Chomei, Kosuchumu, Akari and Yasuo all went with Taka to her lab. Kosuchumu said that they and Akari left long before Chomei and Yasuo. Chomei claimed to leave next, and left Yasuo in the lab with Taka.”

I turn to Ichiha to see that she’s thankfully writing all of that down, and is making a copy of the alibis for me. What would I do without you, Ichi?

“Anyway, Bura! You told me to get everyone’s alibis... so what’s yours and Ichiha’s?”  
Fuck.  
I forget the two of us are technically still suspects.

“After the announcement, Ichiha and I went to my lab together. We stayed in there investigating for a little while, then headed back to our cabin for the rest of the night. I can only assume that we left long before anyone else did because we only saw three cabin lights on.”

I really hope that sounded concise and not too convoluted. Obviously, I know that neither Ichi or I are the suspects as we were together the whole time last night. We didn’t even know where Taka’s lab was until this morning. I just hope us backing each other up is going to be enough to prove our innocence in the class trial.

Giichi nods at me and strides over to Yasuo, who’s standing by Taka’s body. I can only assume it’s to check up on him. 

Ichi quickly slams a sheet of paper into my chest, saying “Take this,” before turning back to her notebook and continuing to write. Where did that notebook even come from?  
The girl is wearing a blouse and a short skirt, for Christ’s sake.  
Ignoring that... dilemma for the time being, I look at the sheet of paper that Ichi’s given me. On one side it has all the alibis that Giichi just told us, and on the other side, a few details about the crime scene.

Her handwriting is incredibly pretty, with multiple swirls at the end of letters. It’s almost at the point where some letters are borderline illegible. She doesn’t dot her ‘i’s, and instead draws a small little heart above them. The same rings true for her punctuation.

Is everything about this girl oddly endearing? I guess that’s the Ultimate Romantic’s charm.

Ichi’s finished writing at this point and has handed two identical sheets to Yasuo and Giichi.  
Fuck, she’s purposely leaving multiple people out of her notes. I’m gonna have to ask her why later.

The bell rings out. That fucking bell.

“Investigation time is over, now it’s time for… well, I don’t know. Hopefully, something less boring! Now then, I hope you have all calmed down because now you’re going to trial for the death of Taka... fuck, what‘s her last name? 

Whatever, she’s dead!  
Everyone gather in the Great Hall now and I, the incredible Monokuma, shall reveal the trial grounds!”

Already?! That’s all the time we get for the investigation? 

This should certainly be a treat, with only four out of fifteen people having any of the information. The baker is still here, but my intuition tells me that Ichi isn’t going to give him a sheet.

The five of us walk out of the lab and then sprint to catch up with the rest of the group, who have already set off towards the hall. 

It’s hard to tell whether or not this walk to the hall is worse than the last, because while we’re less confused, an aura of death and misfortune looms over us all.

I guess you could even call it despair.

We arrive in the hall, and all 6 bears are there waiting for us. How lovely! Just what I wanted this Christmas(!)

Monokuma speaks up first.  
“Ahhhh! Welcome, all of you juvenile delinquents, to the first class trial of the trip! Puhuhu, the adrenaline is rushing already!”

Does this jackass ever shut up? He speaks like he’s in danger as well.  
“Please can you all stand back, so the entrance to the class trial can open? Thank you.” The bear drawls.

We do as we’re told, and everyone stands to the sides of the hall. Part of the floor opens up, and a large, cage-like box rises from the floor. It has a full top and bottom, but the four walls are made from a chain-link fence. The only notable feature is a wooden box around the open door.  
“Anyway! This is your stop, you insufferable vermin! Get in the elevator, and we will head to the trial grounds!”

We all obey, again, and wander cautiously into the chamber, spreading out across the small space we have. The door swings shut behind us, and the yellow Monokub speaks - Monosuke, was his name?  
“Please keep your arms, legs, heads, tails and all other body parts inside the elevator as it goes down, and you should arrive in one piece at the trial ground shortly.”

With that, the old elevator begins to creak and slowly fall beneath the earth, leaving us alone to our thoughts again without the beast’s intrusion.

I can’t help but feel like this is all my fucking fault. My talent as the “Ultimate Lucky Student” has plagued me my entire life, even if I wasn’t hyper-aware of its name until now. It hasn’t normally lead to anything as bad as murder or death before, but it’s lead to people around me being badly hurt.  
Physically or emotionally.  
Things have been going too well for me before all of this, and I’ve met some of the most wonderful people in my life in a day, so… I can’t help but feel like it was my luck that killed Taka last night. She was far away enough to be a warning of worse things to come, but still close enough to hurt.

I spoke to her only yesterday. She was bubbly and larger than life, yet still having a methodical mind below it all. We could have become great friends but now she’s dead. If my cynical mind has guessed what these “punishments” are, we’re about to lose another friend.  
Damn it all! Damn my luck! Damn that bear!

I’m pulled away from my thoughts by Ichi subtly holding my hand, her head turned away from me. She has a serious look on her face, this can’t be good.  
“Fuyu, I just want you to know that I’m not always going to side with everything you say during the trial, and I need you to promise that you’ll do the same. We both know that neither of us did it as we have each other’s alibis for the time of the murder. This means that we need to do our absolute best to find out who really did it, even if that means arguing against each other. Emotions cannot be present in a decision like this, but I’m still your best friend. I promise this is hurting me as much as it hurts you.”

She’s right. Of fucking course she is. 

Loathe as I am to say it, but since the two of us have secured each other’s innocence, we can’t afford to go the whole trial on that alone.

One of these alibis and the evidence will contradict someone’s testimony in the trial, whether on accident or purpose. I need to prepare to disagree with Ichiha to find the truth.

With a heavy heart, I nod in agreement with her.  
“This isn’t personal, right?”  
“Of course not, Fuyu.”

She drops my hand and strides into the now-open trial room with the most confidence I’ve ever seen in her.

The trial room is daunting, and completely unnatural. Surreal. Artificial. 

But it’s all we’ve got.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first investigation has now been finished!  
> Next up, the trial! Just as a warning, the trials are going to be written more like a groupchat fanfic, as that will make it easier to jump between the characters talking without loads of “he said”, “she said” or “they said” in the middle. Just to help it flow a bit nicer you know?
> 
> The trial is honestly going to take a much longer time to write as I will make multiple different drafts of it. The trial needs to include everyone’s characteristics instead of just 4 or 5 people so I’ll need to take a lot longer to ensure their dialogue matches up to the vision I have of them!
> 
> Also we are finally gonna get that antag Ichiha action next chapter hehehehehehehehe.

**Author's Note:**

> I quickly want to clear up my opinion on danganronpa antags. I don’t think that they need to be assholes outside of the trials, they just need to be the one who fucks up the trial and makes it a misery for the player. So therefore I am going to be writing Ichiha as a bubbly, larger-than-life person, who is actually friends with Bura outside of trials despite her being the antag and an absolute bitch in the trials. Think of her as the love child between Kokichi and Miu (that's a bad ship though whoops)


End file.
